Covenant Transport Reports 1Q Loss on 'Soft Demand'

Click here to write a Letter to the Editor.

ovenant Transport Inc. said late Thursday it lost $650,000 or 4 cents a share in the first quarter, compared with net income of $721,000 or 5 cents a year earlier.

The truckload carrier said in a statement that its revenue rose to $137.9 million, from $137.9 million a year ago.

Covenant said March 23 that its quarter earnings would be between breaking even to a loss of 6 cents per share, in part due to “softer-than-expected freight demand.” (Click here for previous coverage.)

Chief Executive Officer David Parker reiterated that statement and said the reduced demand “impacted both the average miles per tractor and our ability to obtain the level of rate increases we originally expected. These factors outweighed a pretty good quarter from a cost standpoint.”

The company also reduced its fleet size by almost 5%, mostly as a result of owner-operator attrition, Parker said.

Covenant is ranked No. 29 on the Transport Topics 100 listing of U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.